ﱁ ﱂ ﱃ ﱄ ﱅ ﱆ ﱇ ﱈ ﱉ ﱊ ﱋ ﱌ ﱍ ﱎ ﱏ ﱐ ﱑ ﱒ ﱓ ﱔ ﱕ ﱖ ﱗ ﱘ ﱙ ﱚ ﱛ ﱜ ﱝ ﱞ ﱟ ﱠ
And [He also forgave] the three who were left behind [and regretted their error] to the point that the earth closed in on them in spite of its vastness and their souls confined them and they were certain that there is no refuge from Allah except in Him. Then He turned to them so they could repent. Indeed, Allah is the Accepting of repentance, the Merciful.
Tafsir
Verse range: 9:118
{The three} are Ka‘b ibn Mālik, Murāra ibn al-Rabī‘, and Hilāl ibn Umayya.
{Who were left behind}: They were left behind from the military expedition. It is also said this refers to Abū Lubāba and his companions when they were forgiven after them. It is also read as khullifū (meaning they were left behind in Medina while others went to battle), or fasadū (they became corrupt), derived from al-khālifa (corruption) or khulūf al-fam (foul breath). Ja‘far al-Ṣādiq read it as khālafū (they opposed), and al-A‘mash read it as al-mukhallafīn (the ones left behind).
{For all its vastness}: Meaning, despite its breadth. This is a metaphor for their bewilderment; it is as if they could find no place in the earth to settle, due to their anxiety and distress over their situation.
{And their souls were straitened for them}: Meaning their hearts; they could find no comfort or joy, for they were constricted by the intensity of their loneliness and grief.
{And they realized}: They came to know with certainty.
{That there is no refuge from} the wrath of {Allah except} by turning to His forgiveness.
{Then He turned to them so that they might repent}: He returned to them with acceptance and mercy, time after time, so that they would remain steadfast in their repentance and persist in it, and so that they would repent again in the future should they commit a sin, knowing that Allah is the Accepter of Repentance for those who repent, even if they return to the sin a hundred times a day.
It is narrated that a group of believers stayed behind the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). Some of them had second thoughts, regretted their position, and caught up with him.
Al-Ḥasan said: It reached me that one of them had a garden worth more than a hundred thousand dirhams. He said, "O garden, nothing held me back but your shade and the anticipation of your fruit. Go, you are in the path of Allah."
Another had nothing but his family, so he said, "O family, nothing delayed me or held me back but my attachment to you. By Allah, I will endure the deserts until I catch up with the Messenger of Allah." He mounted his camel and caught up.
Another had nothing—no family or wealth—and said, "O soul, nothing held me back but the love of life for your sake. By Allah, I will endure hardships until I catch up with the Messenger of Allah." He took his provisions and caught up.
Al-Ḥasan said: "By Allah, this is how the believer is; he repents from his sins and does not persist in them."
It is narrated from Abū Dharr al-Ghifārī that his camel was slow, so he carried his belongings on his back and followed the tracks of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) on foot. When the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) saw his silhouette, he said, "Be Abū Dharr." The people said, "It is him." He said, "May Allah have mercy on Abū Dharr; he walks alone, dies alone, and will be resurrected alone."
It is narrated that Abū Khaythama reached his garden. He had a beautiful wife who had spread a mat for him in the shade, prepared fresh dates, and brought cold water. He looked and said, "Shade, fresh dates, cold water, and a beautiful wife, while the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) is in the heat and the wind? This is not right." He stood up, saddled his camel, took his sword and spear, and departed like the wind. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) looked toward the road and saw a rider appearing in the mirage. He said, "Be Abū Khaythama," and it was him. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) rejoiced and prayed for his forgiveness.
Others remained and did not catch up, including the three.
Ka‘b said: When the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) returned, I greeted him. He replied with a smile of someone angry, after mentioning me and saying, "What held Ka‘b back?" It was said to him, "Nothing held him back but the beauty of his garments and looking at his own reflection." Mu‘ādh said, "I know nothing of him but goodness and Islam."
He forbade anyone from speaking to us, the three. People shunned us, and no one spoke to us, near or far. When forty nights had passed, we were ordered to separate from our wives. When fifty nights were complete, I heard a voice from the peak of Mount Sal‘: "Rejoice, O Ka‘b ibn Mālik!" I fell down in prostration, for I was as my Lord described: {The earth was straitened for them for all its vastness, and their souls were straitened for them.}
The good news followed. I put on my clothes and went to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). He was sitting in the mosque with the Muslims around him. Ṭalḥa ibn ‘Ubayd Allāh stood up, shook my hand, and said, "Congratulations on Allah’s acceptance of your repentance." I will never forget that of Ṭalḥa. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, his face shining like the moon, "Rejoice, O Ka‘b, at the best day you have seen since your mother bore you." Then he recited the verse to us.
Abū Bakr al-Warrāq was asked about "sincere repentance" (al-tawba al-naṣūḥ), and he said: "It is that the earth becomes straitened for the repentant despite its vastness, and his own soul becomes straitened for him, like the repentance of Ka‘b ibn Mālik and his two companions."
